The Blue Jackets have one of the best offensive defensemen in the NHL in Zach Werenski and have added such skilled blueliners as Adam Boqvist, Jake Bean, Jake Christiansen and Denton Mateychuk -- to name a few -- to the organization in the past year or so.
Columbus placed sixth among NHL teams last season with 43 goals scored by defensemen, so there's shortage of CBJ blueliners who can put the puck in the net, with more believed to be on the way.
But what Columbus was looking for after giving up the most goals in franchise history was a different kind of defenseman, a sturdy veteran who could play the hard minutes, brought toughness to the table and preferably could play the right side.
When general manager Jarmo Kekalainen scanned the market going into free agency, the player he circled was Erik Gudbranson. Kekalainen described him as the team's No. 1 target, and the Blue Jackets signed him to a four-year contract at the start of the open period.
"We have plenty of those guys," Kekalainen said of the skilled defensemen on the roster. "We needed this element badly, a guy with size who can play tough, in front of the net, in the areas where most of the goals are scored from. He was also on a No. 1 penalty kill unit on a very good team in Calgary last year. I think he'll fit our needs perfectly. We have plenty of puck-moving, swift-skating offensive defensemen in our lineup, and this was something that we needed."
Gudbranson spoke of his excitement to join Columbus when he signed, in part because of the consistency awarded by the four-year contract. Gudbranson has played for seven NHL teams over the course of his 11-year NHL career, including six different squads over the past four seasons. The third overall pick in the 2010 draft, Gudbranson is coming off career-high offensive totals a year ago as well as a plus-15 rating.
